The New York Chunks have been sent packing back down to D.III. Since promoting to USA D.II-1 after Season 9, the team has struggled to keep up with the league every season, so this demotion seems like the inevitable outcome of seasons of difficulty. Following the Chunks’ meteoric rise through the lower divisions, success in D.II was thought realistic, but after flirting with relegation nearly every season, never even reaching a .500 record in a single season, it seems more amazing that the Chunks even survived five seasons before this miserable 6th season.

The Chunks now find themselves at a crossroads with a payroll too bloated for a diminished D.III income. Hard decisions will need to be made with certain players and management will need to decide if the current roster, perhaps minus a few players, is worth keeping together as the Chunks will likely be among the serious contenders in a D.III league for a championship and quick repromotion back to D.II. However, given the problems the Chunks had with their current roster, a season or two in D.III could be an opportunity to shake out some palyers and attempt a fast rebuilding. Among the highlights of this past season failure was the brisk development Donnie Rivas and Steve Banfield, the best rookie tandem the Chunks had ever drafted. The development of these players, particularly Rivas who seems destined for greatness, will likely be considered an essential part of the Chunks’ future. And with the third pick in the next draft, another potential superstar will certainly be joining the team. A possible scenario for next season may involve a roster operating at a financial deficit with the expectation of a championship, but with a mix of all-stars and under-20 players to afford continued player development. In any case, Season 16 could turn out to be a watershed season for the franchise.

For the record, following the disappointing 7-15 Season 15, the New York Chunks all-time records are now:
Division IV regular season: 49-8 .860
Division IV playoffs: 7-4 .636
Division III regular season: 58-8 .879
Division III playoffs: 10-4 .714
Division II regular season: 50-82 .379
Division II relegation playoffs: 6-2 .750
Overall regular season: 167-98 .630
Overall playoffs: 17-6 .739
Overall relegation playoffs: 6-2 .750
Cup games: 49-12 .803

Last edited by GM-chihorn at 7/25/2011 9:03:59 AM

Reply to this

By: Bayard Forrest
To: chihorn

87332.2 as reply to 87332.1
04/11/2011 09:50:34

Good luck next season. Stay in touch. I think we can both make it back and become the juggernauts we thought we could when we first arrived.

I too cruised through DIV and DIII and thought I could succeed in DII just as easy. But, they opened the floodgates to parity and no longer could a pair of 70k guards flat outplay a pair of 15k guards.

Regards,

Bayard

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